Podcast Downloads Rise In September.

Podcast listening ticked up in September, according to Triton Digital’s latest rankings. The company reports a 4% month-over-month increase in average weekly downloads across the top podcast sales networks.

The iHeart Audience Network once again held the top spot, averaging 71.8 million weekly downloads. NPR remained No. 2 with 25.8 million, up 6% from August, while Audacy Podcast Network ranked third with 16.4 million, also up from 15.8 million the previous month.

Rounding out the top networks were Audioboom, Cumulus Podcast Network, Paramount, and Salem Media Group. Triton’s monthly reports include only publishers that opt in to the measurement program and reflect the period of September 1–28.

Among individual podcasts, the lineup at the top was largely unchanged. NPR News Now and Up First again ranked No. 1 and No. 2, followed by The Charlie Kirk Show, which climbed to third place in September. Stuff You Should Know came in fourth, with 48 Hours rounding out the top five.

The month’s highest-charting debut was Fifteen: Inside the Daniel Marsh Murders from Audacy Podcast Network, entering at No. 73. The true crime series examines the 2013 killings of an elderly California couple by a 15-year-old boy, a case that has drawn renewed attention as Marsh seeks resentencing under juvenile justice reforms.

Triton’s Top Sales Network and Top Podcasts charts track performance across hundreds of publishers and genres, providing one of the most widely used benchmarks in the industry for measuring audience reach and engagement.